


The past in the onsen

by Lady_Monochromic



Category: Naruto
Genre: Drabble, Friendship/Love, M/M, Regret
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-02
Updated: 2015-04-02
Packaged: 2018-03-20 19:03:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3661452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Monochromic/pseuds/Lady_Monochromic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Drabble: They wash one another's backs and find the past.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Version One

**Author's Note:**

> Cross post JULY 2014

"Let me wash your back, rival!" Gai did not wait for the groan nor the sigh, before pulling a stool to sit behind his naked rival.

He began to scrub meticulously. Gai was hardly gentle – Kakashi expected nothing else – if anything the movement on his back seemed more rough after the four days spent with three excited genins.

But just as he had started, Gai stopped, his hands hovered over wet pale skin. “Kakashi!” Gai’s voice bellowed through his ears leaving Kakashi to sigh in response.

Gai’s face contorted and he voiced vehement disgust, “Who did this?”

"Did what?" Kakashi turned his head as far as he could. He met Gai’s furrowed brows trained on his back. They had many opportunity to see each other naked so he did not see the reason for such intensity.

_Ah… that…_

Gai ran a finger, from his left shoulder blade to the opposite side, along a deep white scar Kakashi had forgotten about. It was a mark he would have needed two mirrors to see it clearly.

Kakashi shrugged turning his gaze back to the communal showers in front of them, “I assume it’s from a mission. If not, it’s from the time I was so excited on the Icha Icha pre-release I cut myself cooking.”

"Who did this?" Gai’s voice was softer, although still loud. Receiving no answer he switched to a stern, "Kakashi."

Kakashi exhaled; it took effort to shrug his shoulders. “ANBU days,” He said simply but his rival would know how heavy those words were, know why he avoided it.

Though Kakashi could not see, he sensed Gai nodding. Slowly, his rival’s warmth blanketed his back. The warm touch on the scar accompanied by Gai’s forehead and hair let out warm breaths on his vertebrae: heavy and silent.

Quiet from the optimistic jounin unnerved Kakashi, especially since they were outside of battle.

"Wait, don’t start saying you want to avenge me," He had to see Gai’s face if only to assure himself that Gai wasn’t so stupid to search blindly for an unknown S-ranked enemy. Kakashi turned round to meet deep furrowed brows,  _definitely_ , contemplating action.

"Gai."

"Fine," Gai gave in – the only time he ever would. His finger ran over the scar stopping on his vertebrate; it sent a warm chill through pale skin.

"If I had been there, there would be no scar." Whilst the statement was quieter than his usual declarations, it was no less bold – Kakashi was sure it was stronger.

 _And if you had been there, there would be another ghost…_  That thought would later be pursued when Kakashi would make an attempt to sleep.

The quiet that fell over them strained them both; it was unlike them no, it was unlike Gai.

"I thought you wanted to wash my back."


	2. Version Two

"Gai, don’t be stubborn." Kakashi sighed tightening the only fabric covering his face – it was one out of two items that covered him in the baths. "Let me wash your back."

"It is fine, rival!" Gai grabbed a sponge and faced Kakashi. "My arm isn’t injured and I am perfectly capable of doing it myself!"

"I challenge you to a best of three, then?" Kakashi held his fist out. "If I win, I’m washing. If you win, you can do it yourself with the pain in your shoulder."

Gai accepted thrusting his hand out.

The result left Kakashi pulling a stool ready for his friend to sit in front of him. Reluctantly, Gai seated himself grumbling to himself that his arm was fine. The silver-haired jounin ignored him and began rubbing the sponge in silent circular patterns on his shoulders. They formed soapy bubbles on skin that never met the sun.

When he reached Gai’s lower back he could not help but grimace at the horrid white scar the length of his hand. It was a deep – still is – obvious war wound. Kakashi could feel his stomach squeeze at the sight of the scar.

He remembered when he had first seen the scar – although back then it had been a fresh stitched wound – in the hospital with Gai’s grin spread across his face. Pride oozed through his pores, boasting his efforts. “Kakashi, this is a mere trophy to my saving of Ebisu and that kunai!”

At the time Kakashi had thought that it would have been better if the kunai had hit Ebisu – he still did. Truly his blood had boiled at the adolescent laid on the hospital bed, for being too Gai-like in heroism and gallant acts. He was beyond stupid. Gai was reckless.

Still, with ten years on Kakashi loathed the scar set so deeply in the jounin’s body. To the man it adorned, it would remain a trophy and Kakashi always left the room when Gai retold the story of how he received such a “beautiful” scar.

Kakashi was supposed to be helping, scrubbing his rival’s back but the thought that plagued him all those years came through:  _If I had been there, Gai would not have needed to become like this._

"Gai, you know your recklessness does more damage to you." Kakashi said. He hoped he sounded light, casual like always.

"That is only because they die and do not live with it. Don’t worry so much about me, Kakashi." Partially-pleased he had appeared casual when Gai scoffed, Kakashi carried on with his prize for winning the little game of luck.

But he would worry; Gai’s body was his just as much as his own skin.

Their bodies an extension of the other’s. No matter who was injured or even who had acted recklessly they both shared the burden.

Kakashi closed his eyes as he washed his lower back – out of sight; out of mind.


End file.
